Portrait 20: Another look into the Cloud

When I met Loud Cloud, he was hiking in denim and carrying roughly 60 pounds on his back. The first conversation I had with him was only 10 miles away from the next town and resupply. He was sitting on the trail, taking a break, and drinking a can of beer. He left the previous town with four beers and carried two of them all the way to the next town. In an activity where the hot thing is "ultra light" gear and shaving the handle of your toothbrush to save half a gram of weight, this man carried two beers for almost 100 miles. He also was carrying an axe, six pairs of socks, an entire case of fire starters, and a literal bag of rocks. He finally agreed to let some people shake his pack down when we were outside Acton, CA.

Hiking the next day - lighter by over 15 pounds - he was really happy with the results. It's pretty easy to make fun of him for carrying a gallon baggy that was becoming progressively more full with small rocks. But the truth is, he was gathering interesting stones that he thought his mother would like. I generally lug around a two-person tent because I'm tall and I like the head space. I can carry the weight, so why should anybody else care? If Loud Cloud wants to carry an extra five pounds of rocks, who am I to tell him that his legs can't handle it? He was having a great time - and nothing and nobody was going to stop him from it. And I find that to be tremendously inspiring.